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Abandoned property

Abandoned property: an overview

Personal property left by an owner who intentionally relinquishes all rights to its control.  Real property may not be abandoned. See Adverse Possession.

At common law, a person who finds abandoned property may claim it.  To do so, the finder must take definite steps to show their claim.  For example, a finder might claim an abandoned piece of furniture by taking it to her house, or putting a sign on it indicating her ownership.

Many jurisdictions have statutes that modify the common law's treatment of lost or abandoned property.

In the context of intellectual property, abandoned property refers to the relinquishing of intellectual property rights by an owner, thereby allowing others to use the intellectual property without protest.  For example, an inventor who does not register a patent to his invention relinquishes the patent rights associated with his invention, allowing others to use his invention freely and without recourse.

Definition from Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary

To relinquish ownership and rights in real estate or other property -- for example, a tenant who (by all outside appearances) has lntentionally and permanently left an apartment with personal possessions. Abandoned property includes intellectual property rights -- for example, if an inventor has not applied for a patent, others are legally permitted to use the invention.

Definition provided by Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary.

August 19, 2010, 5:10 pm

Richy is a superstar athlete.  One day, he tosses his shoes in the trash can next to his house.  Paul takes the shoes and sells them for $10,000.  Richy sues Paul for conversion and wins.  Paul argues that Richy abandoned his shoes, but the court concludes that Richy did not voluntarily relinquish all rights to their control.  As unlikely as it seems, Richy could have removed the shoes from his trash can once they dried out and worn them again.  Paul loses all money from the sale of Richy's shoes.

Next summer, Richy throws his watch into the same trash can.  He then puts the trash can on the curb for collection.  Paul follows the garbage truck and finds the watch before it is placed in the landfill.  Paul sells the watch for $1 million.  This time, Paul gets to keep the money.  By voluntarily placing the watch on the curb for collection, Richy relinquished all rights to its control.  Since the watch was abandoned by its previous owner, Paul was free to claim it and dispose of it for money.